Materials of the Reactor Core

Abstract

By the beginning of work in the 1960s, information on the properties and manufacturing technology of materials for the NRE core (based on zirconium, niobium, uranium carbides, and zirconium hydride) was absent or inconsistent. It was known that unlike mono compound of uranium with a low melting point (2,500 K), a fuel based on solid solutions of UC–ZrC and UC–NbC carbides with nearly stochastic composition can provide the heating of hydrogen up to 3,000 K. Therefore, investigations of solid solutions of uranium monocarbide with isomorphous, highly refractory zirconium, niobium, and monocarbides providing high melting points and compatibility of HREs with heat carriers became the most important material technology direction. The prospects of the development of UC–ZrC–ZrN fuel were also outlined. The manufacturing technology of these refractory materials was based on powder metallurgy methods.